Are You Lean Like a Lynx?

So, Lucas LOVES puppets. Of any shape, sort or size. He cracks up at the Muppets. He loves the puppets on the Baby Einstein videos. He even loves it when I play with the puppet on his exersaucer.

He loves singing. He's even starting singing along with me when I sing. (He attempts to sing the alphabet by going "Ah, ah, ah, ah, ahhhhhh" - it's so cute I can't stand it.) He loves music and his new thing is to hit one object against another to make a sound.

He LOVES singing puppets.

So I have a theory. I want to get Cats on DVD from the library and play it for Luke.

My thinking is this:

Huge, grown-up sized puppety things

Huge, grown-up sized puppety things singing nonsensy songs

I think he'll love it.

Poor kid.

Getting My Latin On

So two weeks ago (I know, I know, I'm a delinquent blogger) I participated in the Hispanic Heritage assembly. It was really quite neat - kids from all nationalities participated. We had 2 speakers, one of which is the conductor/musical director for "In the Heights", the Tony-nabbing show of 2008. The kids sang a song from the show called "Piragua". They were singing and dancing and the MD from the show was playing piano. Knowing of my musical prowess, they asked me to play some auxillary percussion and who am I to decline small children? So I jammed on the guiro. I rocked so well, that I didn't even need cues to tell me when to come in or drop out. Each time the MD went to cue me, I was already there.

So, that makes TWO Broadway musicians I've played with.

I am sooo kewl.

Absence Makes the Heart Grow Fonder

I'm sorry I've been away so long. I was playing every weekend in a row from August until October. This is my one weekend off before my big, huge event next weekend. Luckily, after that I'm free as a bird.

But all is well in the Curly World. We're all healthy. Tom is loving student teaching. Luke is growing like a weed and I'm just hanging in there. I'm proud of us for getting this far. The end of having a full time student in the family is near!

More later I promise. More about new shows I'm watching (How did I NOT watch 'Pushing Daisies' last year????). More about my culinary escapades.

I promise!

Best. Birthday. Ever.

So not only is it a super birthday because I spent it with my baby boy. (And awesome husband) But it's restaurant week here and a dozen restaurants had 3-course prix fixe menus for $25. So I got to try this neat little restaurant Lucy's, which has a great tapas menu and had the yummiest options for each course. It was a cute little jewel box of a place, with mismatched chandeliers and a tiny, 4-seat bar. Luke LOVED staring at the lights and ceiling fans, the french doors were all open and the weather was perfect. It couldn't have been a nicer evening. I had amazing steamed mussels, organic pan-roasted chicken with the creamiest polenta I've ever tasted and warm molten chocolate cake. (If you can't eat warm chocolate cake on your birthday, when can you eat it?) Tommy hesitantly ordere a pork chop that came with figs and plums, mashed potatoes and spinach. Now, he's really a cheeseburger and fries kind of guy, so I was very happy to see him going out on a limb. He LOVED it! He said he was wary at first, but he said the food was amazing. And...he said, "We can totally come back to this place." Which I whole-heartedly agreed with, if nothing else, but to sample the crabcakes and the truffle mac and cheese. The service was amazing, my food was unbelievable and the atmosphere was perfect. Lucas was an absolute angel. Diners all around us kept commenting on how adorable and well behaved he was. Our waiter even took a photo of the 3 of us for us.Lucas decided this was the perfect occasion to start saying, "Ma ma ma ma ma" which I know doesn't really mean he's referring to me, but was wonderful to hear just the same.

And yes, there is an amazing difference in taste when you pan-roast an organic chicken!!

I Am So Kewl

So, I listen to WFUV, Fordham University's radio station a lot. They do various fun morning stuff. The last time they had asked what would be on George Orwell's iPod since it was the anniversary of his birth. I emailed that any animal song on The Beatles' White Album would sure be there. This time they asked what would be on Alfred Hitchcock's iPod. I HAD to think of something cool. Had to. So at first of course I think of "Psycho Killer". But that'd be way too obvious. So I delve deeper. And *poof* the line "She looks like Eva Marie Saint, in On the Waterfront" pops out at me. I think of it in terms of the cover by Tori Amos of the Lloyd Cole song "Rattlesnakes". So I send off my email stating, "Curly Glamour Girlie of Her Hometown (you have to include your first name and hometown) thinks that Rattlesnakes by Lloyd Cole would be on Alfie's iPod since he loved his icy blondes and would want to carry a song that payed hommage to Eva on it." Or something like that. So I'm sitting in my office with 2 tech guys from the new software package we're moving to who are training me. And I'm listening to 'FUV not expecting anything. All of a sudden, I hear very familiar lyrics. THEY'RE PLAYING THE LLOYD COLE SONG!! I get very excited. I try explaining to the 2 guys that this makes me so freakin' cool. Then I don't let them speak after the song is over, since I know now that they're going to say my name ON THE RADIO! Not only does the coolest morning dj ever Claudia Marshall say my name, but she reads practically my WHOLE email! I think the 2 tech guys were even mildly impressed.

I felt cool for the whole morning. It even held over until the afternoon. Then I was bummed by Kelli being aufed on Project Runway.

Those (Not) Lazy, Hazy Crazy Days of Summer

The title above reminds me of a Gilmore Girls episode where they kept playing that song over and over and over again at a town festival.

But today was far from lazy.

Luke and I:

*Went to a teen production of "Thoroughly Modern Millie", whereupon I was able to show off my pristine, perfect child to my friends. Whereupon it was also Luke's first musical.
*Did laundry.
*Ran home to change and load the Lucas-bag.
*Went to my MRI where I conquered the closed MRI. (I thought I was going to have to be seriously drugged to be put in there.)
*Came home.
*Made dinner AND homemade caramel sauce for a cake I made over the weekend.

I'm beat.

And I'm lucky that Luke's so good that I can tote him just about anywhere. He LOVED the show. So much so that I had to remove him from the theatre since he thought it was an audience-participation type performance and sang along and spoke back to the actors. This kid seriously has the theatre gene.

WalMart - Friend or Foe?

I have a confession. I heart WalMart. In a time where gas is topping $4 a gallon and coffee can go for $3 a cup, I'll take bargains where I can get them. I've even been shopping there more than my favorite store in the world, Target. I don't get why Target isn't as vilified as WalMart - should I not like WalMart as much as I do?

Not for nothing, but the staff at the ones I go to are almost always helpful and friendly. The stores are clean. The aisles are wide enough to get down with a cart. And the prices are seriously unbeatable. This is not to say I purchase everything at WalMart, but I do as much as I can there and save quite a bit of the green stuff. I bought a 4-cup coffee maker for $10. And it's a nice little stainless steel version that looks classy on the kitchen counter. I buy cute little separates there that I can wear to work - shirts for $10, dresses for $15-$20. Seriously. I mean, I love love love the Isaac Mizrahi line at Target, but $40 dresses are a little out of the family budget right now.

So what's the deal? Is WalMart a good thing? A bad thing? I know that one of the arguments is that they shut out the little mom and pop stores, but honestly, here on Long Island, there were few and far between those to begin with. And with gas rising, one-stop-shopping really makes a whole lot more sense.

Note To Self

No matter how wistfully you think of eating halvah in your childhood, no matter how yummy you think it is, no matter how on sale it is, it will no doubt give you a stomachache. (Yes, I know Kerry.)

What We Do Every Night Pinky.....

If you've ever met Lucas, you know he's a super-smartie. I know I'm a doting mama and such, but he is, really. And if you need proof, I submit the following. Here he is trying to take over the world. We're convinced he's secretly an evil villain. He's got all the characteristics; the almost non-existent hair, the quirky wardrobe and the interesting pet (Cupid, the rattle reindeer).

So here he is, working very very hard at his evil plan:
Notice the little globe next to his control panel. It's how he chooses his targets. I asked him to spare Panama since they make such delicious coffee as well as Holland since that's where yummy cheese comes from.

And here he noticed his classified area was broken into and promptly called for security.Notice the little button he just pushed calling for security? You think it's a simple toy that plays animal sounds and synthesizer versions of Vivaldi's Four Seasons, but once deployed, the hounds are released.

Bribery does work however, and by slipping Dr. L-Bear an ice cube I was spared tortuous punishment with the death laser.I was recognized as being an ally and even let in on some classified information. I was given the code name "Maaahhh". We discussed future evil plots and had a happy conclusion to our meeting. I have since been made press agent for Dr. L-Bear. (Notice Cupid not far from control central on the floor.)

First Non-Cello Sunday

It's about 5:00 p.m. est. I'm not finishing up a performance or en route home from a show. I feel naked in a way. But I had a glorious day. I was able to:

* Hang with Lukey-Luke all morning all relaxed-like.

* Try my Panamanian coffee in my one-cupper. (Which shocked the hell out of me as to how good it was - not bitter, not too strong and a nice aftertaste. Exactly what Fairway CoffeeMan described.)

* Have breakfast at Our Diner (the Infinity Diner in West Babylon, if you must know). I love that the proprietor knows us and whisks us to a booth immediately. And I love that no matter what I have, it's delicious. From corned beef hash (which I'm sure Kerry will have something to say about) to a veggie omlette to my usual vanilla egg cream, it's always tasty. Even when I take a chance on something I usually don't order like chocolate chip pancakes.

* Take an impromptu nap with a sweet smelling baby snuggled next to me.

* Finish Chuck Palahnuik's newest book "Snuff". He's such a sicko, but I'm addicted to his writing.

* Have a pot of homemade sauce simmer on the stove. It smells heavenly.

It's good to have some time to myself and a week off, but rumors are a-stirring that I'll be filling in for a few shows of "Grey Gardens" at Smithtown. Love that theatre.

Blog Roll

It sounds either like something you'd find in a chocolate assortment and pass over (like a nougat roll or something) or something you'd shout to ensure everyone you tried to amass was present.

Either way, I've turned my "Blogs I Follow" into a "Blog Roll". That way I can see who posted what and when.

Un-Fairway

Fairway is one of those places where I always think, "I should go there more often." And I schlep there (this time with Luke) and then discover why I don't. Because it's in an area where the people are notorious for being insufferably rude. And they were. They'd stop right in front of me, or push right in front of me. Or look at me like I was a huge inconvenience when I stopped to look at something. Seriously. Rude. AND....the prices were either wonderfully affordable, or insanely overpriced.

But I did have some nice moments in there that resulted in some luxury-type purchases. The coffee guy there was wonderful, pleasant and listened to what I liked and didn't like in coffee. He steered me to a coffee from Panama that I bought a half pound of to test out. He ground it for me and asked what kind of machine I had - I said, "One of those horrible drip machines." He laughed and said "I drink about 10 cups a day, you want to know what kind of coffee maker I use?" Thinking he's going to point the way to coffee nirvana, I nodded eagerly. He held this up:
I was stymied! I have one of them at home! I can't wait to try my new custom-picked coffee in the one-cupper with his no-fail formula (2 full tablespoons of coffee + 6 oz. filtered water = good coffee).

And the cheese counter. Oh man. I could have looked for days. AND they had samples! So I bought some delicious smoked mozzerella that we had on ham sandwiches today and I picked up some Dutch Parrano (which Fairway states is a hip cheese that is a cross between a Gouda and a Parmesan) that I plan to use to make myself a little cheese and cracker snack plate later.

I also bought some halvah which is such a yummy treat that I occasionally let myself be tempted by. My Egyptian brother-in-law says that in Egypt that treated it like peanut butter and slathered it on toast. How crazy delicious does that sound?

So, all in all......not so great. The insane crowds were not worth the little gems I discovered. If I find I can't live without coffee from Panama and cheese from Holland, I'll have to go off-hours.

Or just brace myself to be insufferably rude back.

Much Ado About A New 'Do

I cut my hair. Well, actually, I paid someone to cut my hair. I went to see Rita at Supercuts (I know, I know, after having paid $120 plus tip to get a haircut, it's amazing to pay $20 INCLUDING a tip) and gave her a few pictures of some retro-ish type shorter 'dos, including
Marilyn Monroe and Elizabeth Taylor. She seemed a little daunted, but she tried it. We couldn't see the fruits of her labor right away since she had combed my hair (a huge curly no-no) to cut it, but a few days later, it's looking downright cute and sassy.

I feel more like myself with the short hair (which is my usual style) and my purple toenails than I have in a real long time.

Me with longer hair

Me with my new and improved hair 'do

I really like it. Plus, it's so much easier, saves money on hair product and is now Lucas-proof.

Who Says You Can't Find Inexpensive Food in NYC?

Ann sent me this article about the latest thing in NYC - dessert trucks. I find it cool and exciting. I've been to the Dessert Truck - it was so delicious. I mean, where else are you going to get a dessert cooked by a Le Cirque pastry chef for $5???

S-U-C-K-E-R

I'm telling you - slap a "new" label on a product and I pony up like a gambler at OTB. Especially if it's remotely related to my beloved macaroni and cheese. I saw these in a commercial while on vacation in Chicago. I had to have them. Saw them this week at the supermarket and bought them - even though they weren't on sale. They're incredibly cheesy, are shaped like elbow pasta and make your fingers a delicious orange hue. Nummy num num.

While in Chicago, I happened upon Nilla Cakesters. Now the jury is very split about the Oreo Cakesters. I kind of like them, in as much as I love anything having to do with Oreos. And since I'm more of a chocolate girl I didn't expect to like the 'Nilla Cakersters. It was just that "new product syndrome" that drove me to buy them. But oh man. They were delicious. As the Oreo variety taste slightly manufactured (not a real homey devil's food flavor), the 'Nilla variety taste like someone just baked a yellow cake, cut out 2 circles and slathered some cream between them. Cake heaven.

How Creepy Is This?

This woman is selling her house in West Palm Beach (need I even continue?) and putting a personal ad out there all in one fell swoop. Her ad is entitled "Marry a Princess Lost in America".

What?

First of all, by calling yourself a princess you're scaring off any prospective normal men.

Secondly, what makes you "Lost in America"?

Third of all, isn't selling yourself ummm....prostitution?

*shudder*

And The Beauty Is

The Light in the Piazza. I am so so loving this show. It's my first 'real' run post-Lucas. I also really enjoy working at Smithtown again. It's the one theatre where I've done my longest run (8 weeks of Cats) and feel like a real professional. I like how professional everyone acts and just how well-run it is. (Or at least it seems to me) I also can't complain about the fact that I get paid regularly too.

But I just completely lose myself in the music when I play. I lose all self-consciousness and just for lack of a better word, feel the music. It's shows like this (and The Last 5 Years) that I enjoy playing so much.

Quick Fix Beef Burrito Skillet - Courtesy of Kraft

The good people at the Kraft kitchens came up with this recipe for those of us trying to juggle family, dinner, cleaning the house, doing shows and work. I figured what the heck, had the ingredients on hand and it was delicious. And I used ground turkey so it was a fairly healthy meal. It was the type of dish that leftovers tasted even better.

You'll Shake It Like You Just Don't Care

I discovered the Bird and the Bee on WFUV. Love them. They're a mix of trip-ish hop, lounge, tropicalia and alternative. I think of Pants whenever I hear "Polite Dance Song" since it mentions wanting to see someone's "naughty bit". That's such a Pants phrase.

But they're cool. So cool in fact that I actually plunked down a hard-earned $5 for an EP. For 5 measly songs. But they're such kick-ass songs that I didn't even mind.

Chicago - Day 4

So home we had to go, but we had had a great time, got some major relaxing done and ate a lot of yummy food that can't be found in NY. When is NY going to get a Baker's Square?? I mean, nothing on the dessert menu but pies!!!

Coming home was an airport nightmare, but what can you expect from airlines that are all scrambling at this point? I remember when Southwest's stewardesses sang little songs and were uber-friendly. Now they're just average stewardess-friendly. And why can't I board before other people? I have to balance Luke on my hip and somehow make it all the way towards the back of the plane. I have a loooooong letter to send to the folks at Southwest.

But here's a 'family photo'. Sadly, I think it's one of the first we've ever taken.